Before the packaging of filled drink containers, such as bottles, for example, these are usually conveyed in an unsorted manner in mass transport to the inlet of a packaging machine where the containers are distributed to a plurality of conveying channels by jostling and finally are supplied to the packaging machine. Alternatively, the containers can be transported in a single lane to the packaging machine and selectively distributed to a plurality of conveying channels at the machine's inlet. Containers that have been identified as defective are furthermore to be sorted out of the container flow before the packaging.
Detrimental in the unsorted mass transport of the containers is that these first have to be slowed down after the labelling and distributed to a broad container flow. This causes substantial equipment costs. The subsequent jostling of the containers into individual conveying channels is likewise expensive in terms of equipment because special railing structures are required on the conveyor devices. Furthermore detrimental is a comparatively high susceptibility to faults because the containers can become jammed during the jostling.
A single-track container transport with subsequent distribution to channels, such as is described, for example, in DE 4 343 477 C1, causes comparatively long conveyor sections and a large number of drive units, for example, in order to close gaps between individual container groups in individual conveying channels and to reduce the comparatively high inlet speed out of the single-track container transport. This causes undesirably large space requirements and equipment costs. In particular, the distribution of individual containers to conveying channels, such as described, for example, in DE 10 2006 023531 A1, causes undesirably high design costs in regard to the mechanical components and the device controller, because the containers must be moved at comparatively high speeds and with comparatively high accelerations.
Because the containers are normally freely conveyed in an upright position on a conveyor chain or the like, the diversion of defective containers is susceptible to faults, particularly in the event that individual containers have been shifted or displaced due to accelerations or decelerations of the conveyor chain.
EP 2 511 203 A1 furthermore describes a transport device with individually driven transport elements, each of which is assigned to individual containers or container assemblies and with which a stipulated transport division between the containers or container assemblies can be adapted to a subsequent handling unit. In this case, all containers or assemblies of the product flow move in the same manner.
There is consequently a need for devices and methods for grouping containers, particularly for a subsequent distribution of the containers, and/or the inclusion of a diversion function for defective containers, with which at least one of the above mentioned problems can be moderated or even remedied.
The posed object is satisfied with a device that accordingly comprises an outlet star wheel and an immediately adjoining outlet conveyor. The outlet conveyor comprises: a plurality of separately driven, particularly by linear motor drive, vehicles, to which are attached positioning elements to influence the conveying position of a container relative to the container flow; and a conveyor section for the containers along which the vehicles run during the grouping of the containers.
Due to the fact that the vehicles are separately driven, the conveying position of individual containers can be selectively changed in order to arrange the containers in groups. For this purpose, selected containers can be shifted with the positioning elements relative to the container flow in the direction of the particular assigned container group.
The influencing of the conveying position is understood to mean that the positioning elements move individual containers, relative to the incoming container flow, either in the conveying direction towards the leading container, whereby the positioning elements then act as drivers, or against the conveying direction towards the subsequent container, whereby the positioning elements then act as a mechanical limit stop. The positioning elements are in particular developed in such a way that they can contact the sidewalls of the containers in a leading or trailing manner in order selectively to decelerate or accelerate containers with respect to an average conveying speed of the container flow.
The conveyor section can, for example, comprise a conveyor belt or the like that runs at a constant speed, so that the vehicles can both conduct the containers at this speed and decelerate or accelerate the containers with regard to this speed, for example, in certain subsections of the conveyor section. The conveyor section could however also be developed by the vehicles alone, by means of the containers being held between positioning elements of vehicles arranged in pairs. The conveying position of the containers is then influenced by pair-wise deceleration or acceleration of these vehicles. This is conceivable, for example, in container transport using neck handling.
The vehicles, which can be developed, for example, as skids and/or can run on rollers and/or can run along guide rails, are preferably moved by means of a linear drive. This comprises, for example, active drive components attached along the conveyor section, like stators to generate an electromagnetic field, and passive drive components on the vehicles, such as permanent magnets or the like, for example. However the vehicles can also comprise active drive components, such as electric motors, for example. What is crucial is the individual controllability of the vehicles.
Preferably the outlet conveyor is developed in such a way that the vehicles can be selectively decelerated along the conveyor section to at least one stipulated speed. The vehicles are hereby decelerated with respect to a conveying speed stipulated by the outlet conveyor. Consequently individual containers can be selectively decelerated so that following containers run into the containers that have been decelerated in this way.
The containers can consequently be slid together into a container group solely by means of the deceleration of the front-most container. Then it is only necessary to produce the contact with an individual leading positioning element. By stipulating a certain deceleration of the front-most container and of the assigned vehicle, for example, it is possible in a simple way to adjust the number of containers that accumulate along a certain length of the conveyor section. The more strongly the leading vehicle is decelerated, the more containers will accumulate into a container group. With a trailing positioning element, the container group could then additionally be pressed together.
The outlet conveyor is preferably developed in such a way that the vehicles drive to the outlet star wheel independently of one another and, with the positioning elements, engage in the container flow before and/or after an individually selectable sequence of containers. This is to be understood to mean that, for example, a first positioning element engages in a leading manner in front of the first container of a container group that is to be formed. It is furthermore conceivable that a second positioning element engages in a trailing manner behind the last container of the container group that is to be formed. Likewise a first positioning element can engage in a leading manner in front of a container that is to be sorted out of the container flow and a second positioning element can engage behind the container that is to be sorted out.
The selective engagement of the positioning elements in the container flow can, for example, be triggered by control signals that indicate the beginning and/or the end of a container group that is to be formed or that identify a container that is to be sorted out. The vehicles can consequently be driven as needed to the outlet star wheel in order to take over the containers or container groups at stipulated positions within the container flow.
The number of containers in individual container groups can consequently be flexibly adjusted. Individual containers can likewise selectively be assigned to a certain container group or sorted out of the container flow.
The device according to the invention preferably comprises a distributing device in order to distribute container groups formed in the outlet conveyor to at least two conveying channels. For example, following the conveyor section, a distribution section can be developed, along which the container groups are further conveyed while however no longer being conducted by the positioning elements.
For example, the distribution section can be developed in a straight-line continuation of the conveyor section, in particular as a continuous conveyor device, such as, for example, a continuous conveyor belt or the like. The positioning elements release the containers, for example, in that the vehicles turn off in front of the distribution section on to a separate track. It would likewise be possible to move the positioning elements relative to the vehicles and thereby swivel them out or pull them back from the container flow.
The distributing device preferably comprises diverting flaps and is developed in such a way that the diverting flaps engage in each of the gaps between the container groups that have been formed. These gaps are created when the containers are pushed together into container groups. It is therefore not necessary to change the overall transport division of the container flow in order to form suitable gaps for the distribution of the container groups to transport channels. In particular, the container groups can then be comparatively simply and reliably distributed to subsequent conveying channels by using conventional diverting flaps.
The outlet conveyor furthermore preferably comprises a return track to conduct the vehicles back to the outlet star wheel. The vehicles can then be parked in a waiting position in front of the outlet star wheel. From there the vehicles can be driven to the outlet star wheel as needed, so that the positioning elements engage at stipulated positions within the container flow and take over the containers or container groups. The vehicles are preferably conducted back on the return track more quickly than they run along the conveyor section during the grouping of the containers. In this way, it is possible to minimise the number of total vehicles needed.
Preferably at least one diversion area for containers to be sorted out of the container flow is developed on the return track. Containers that are to be sorted out can consequently be selectively conducted between two vehicles to the diversion area. A plurality of diversion areas with assigned collection containers or the like can be provided. For example, the containers are released in the diversion area by the assigned positioning elements and are allowed to fall into a collection container. The diversion area can be arranged in a space-saving manner on the return track.
The outlet conveyor preferably comprises at least one conveyor belt, that can, for example, be developed as a conveyor chain or the like and on which the containers stand during the grouping. The conveyor belt then runs, for example, at a constant conveying speed, in particular at the conveying speed of the outlet star wheel. With the help of the positioning elements, the containers can be shifted on the conveyor belt in an upright position. After this, the container groups are further transported on the conveyor belt in an upright position. Preferably there is also at least one conveyor belt in the area of the distribution section and/or in a conveying area up to the diversion area.
With conveyor belts of that kind, the containers can be supported from below while being conveyed. The containers can thereby be actively conducted with the help of the positioning elements. In the area of the distribution section, the containers are preferably not conducted by the positioning elements.
The positioning elements preferably comprise centring sections that centre the containers during the influencing of their conveying position at a right angle to the container flow. This is to be understood to mean that the containers are centred with respect to one another by a force exerted in the lateral direction on the containers by the positioning elements in the conveying direction or counter to the conveying direction. The centring sections can be developed, for example, as prism-shaped slots in the positioning elements in the top view or as the negative of a container outer wall or the like.
The posed object is likewise satisfied with a method with the use of the device according to the invention. The method according to the invention accordingly comprises a step in which at least a first container of a container group that is to be formed is contacted in a leading manner with one of the positioning elements and the associated vehicle is decelerated in such a way that the containers of the container group run into one another.
For example, the leading positioning element is decelerated with respect to the average speed of the overall container flow and/or of an assigned conveyor belt, so that the containers initially following at the average speed of the container flow one after the other run into the particular leading, decelerated container. Consequently a single leading positioning element is sufficient in order to form a container group.
Depending on the degree of the deceleration of the leading positioning element, various numbers of containers run together along a stipulated conveyor section into a container group. The gap between individual container groups is then formed in that the leading positioning element assigned to the following container group is likewise decelerated.
Furthermore, preferably the last container of the container group that is to be formed is contacted in a trailing manner with a positioning element in such a way that the containers of the container group are slid together and in particular are squeezed. This allows a particularly stable, active conducting of the formed container group between the leading positioning element and the trailing positioning element. The container group can thereby be conducted laterally, for example, by means of guide rails or the like.
Containers that are to be sorted out of the container flow are preferably squeezed between leading and trailing positioning elements and are conducted by the associated vehicles into a diversion area. The positioning elements can consequently be used both for the grouping of containers and for the diversion of containers. Because the containers are squeezed between the assigned positioning elements, the containers with the vehicles can be laterally diverted from the conveyor section and conducted to the diversion area.
A conveyor clearance, stipulated by the outlet star wheel, between the containers is preferably reduced within the formed container groups and simultaneously enlarged between the container groups. The conveying speed of the overall container flow can consequently remain unchanged. The containers are preferably slid together in contact with one another during the grouping. The gaps between adjacent container groups are preferably enlarged to a corresponding degree. The gaps between individual container groups can, however, be additionally enlarged due to the sorting out of individual containers. In any case, sufficiently large gaps can be formed between the individual container groups in a particularly simple way in order to distribute the container groups subsequently to a plurality of channels.
The containers are preferably distributed in groups to conveying channels that are connected in parallel. In this way, the container flow can be simply and uniformly divided into a plurality of parallel container flows for the subsequent packaging of the containers.
Preferably the absence of the containers sorted out of the container flow is compensated by adjusting the size of the formed container groups and/or by a weighted distribution of the formed container groups to the conveying channels in order to uniformly distribute the number of conveyed containers to the conveying channels.
For example, when at least one container is sorted out of a container group, the number of containers in the container groups subsequently conducted to the same conveying channel can be correspondingly increased. Likewise the container groups conducted in the other conveying channels could be correspondingly reduced. It would also be conceivable to register the number of containers missing in the individual conveying channels due to being sorted out and when needed to conduct additional container groups with suitable group sizes to a particular conveying channel. The conveying channels consequently can be supplied in parallel with homogenous container flows within a stipulated tolerance.